Car-brake



(No Model.) 2 Sheets--Sheet 1.

'P. MoMULLEN.

GAR BRAKE.

No. 487,881. 8 Patented Dec. 8; 1892.

Nunms mais co., PHoramno.. wAswmcToN D c (No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2. P. MGMULLEN. GAR BRAKE dmzaf Patented Dec. 6, 1892.

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Y r. ohms Firms co., Phoouwo., wAsmNGYo UNITE STATES PETER MOMULLEN, OF BUFFALO, NEV YORK.

CAR-BRAKE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 487,681, dated December 6, 1892. Application filed August 31. 1892. Serial No. 444,617. (No model.)

To @ZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, PETER MCMULLEN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Buffalo, in the county of Erie and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Car-Brakes; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to figures of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

My invention relates to improvements in brakes employed specially upon railway passenger and freight cars, and has for its object an improved construction and arrangementof parts whereby the brake-shoe is applied to the upper part of the wheel and the employment of the cumbersome and dangerous brake-beam is avoided.

I will now proceed to minutely describe the manner in which I have carried out my invention and lthen claim what I believe to be novel.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a side elevation of a car-truck with my improved brake attached. Fig. 2 is a top plan view of my improved car-brake. Fig. 3 is a detached detail view of the brake-shoe and its lever. Fig. 4 is an under side view of the car, showing the application of my improved brake to the aircylinder; and Fig. 5 is a side view of the same.

Referring to the drawings, 1 l are the wheels, 2 the upper cross-beam, 3 the lower crossbeam, and 4 the iron connecting-strips, of the car-truck to which my improved brake is applied. 'Ihe framework to which the operative parts are secured consists of two similarly` shaped side pieces 5 5, having arched ends extending over the wheels on each side of the truck. At the center of each side piece 5 is cut the rectangular recess 7, into which the upper cross-beam 2 of the truck is fitted, the side pieces 8 8 extending down below the crossbeam 2 and rigidly secured thereto by the cross-strips 9, which are riveted to the side pieces 8 8, as shown, thereby firmly attaching the framework of the brake mechanism to the car-truck over each set of wheels on either side. Between the pieces 5 5 are located the levers 10 10, which are pivoted at their lower ends to the cross-bolts 1l, which unite the pieces 5 5 at a point just above the horizontal center of the wheels. The upper ends of these levers 10 10 are pivoted to the connecting-rod 12, having the turnbuckle 13, and the yoke 14 isin turn pivoted at its two ends to the two sets on either side of the truck at the points l5 15.

The lever 10 consists of a piece of metal bent over upon itself, Aforming arecess 16, as shown in Fig. 3, in which at about the center is pivoted the brake-shoe 17, one for each wheel, as shown in Figs. l and 2. The point of friction of the brake-shoe is, as will be seen, above the horizontal center of the wheel and extends to the upper point of the tread.

My improved brake mechanism just described is connected to the air-cylinder, as shown in Figs. 4 and 5, in which 18 is a shaft journaled in the bearings 19. At or aboutits center are rigidly secured, upon opposite sides thereof, the crank-arms 20 20, at the outer ends of which are pivoted the connectingrods 21 21, which have their other ends pivoted to the yokes 14 14, attached to the brake mechanisms at either end of the car. 22 is a supplemental crank-arm secured to the shaft 18, its outer end being pivoted to the pistonrod 23 of the air-cylinder 24, connected with the force-pum p of the engine. A coiled spring 25, one end of which is secured to the shaft 18 and the other end to the bearing 19, serves to assist in throwing the brake-shoes out of engagement wit-h the wheels.

In case air is not used the brake mechanism described can be connected in any wellknown way to the brake-wheels upon the platforms of the cars.

In operation the rod 12, being properly adj usted by the turnbuckle to give uniform contact of the brake-shoes, is forced by the power applied, so as to set the brake-shoes 17, pivoted to the levers 10, against the tread of the wheels entirely upon its upper portion, which results in a bearing down upon the wheels, making the frictional contact correspondingly eective. It will be seen that my improved construction is all located above the truck, no brake-beam being employed, the presence of which having always been a source of great danger, especially when the trucks leave the track'in the derailment of a car, as in this IOO event the brake-beam is invariably torn away I and dropped across the track, servn g to throw the next car from the track and causing much greater damage than would occur with the use of my improved mechanism.

The sets 5 5 on each side of the truck could be additionally strengthened by rods extending across the truck from side to side and properly secured to the framework.

I claim- 1. A brake mechanism for railway-cars, consisting of a framework secured to the upper side of the truck and extending over the wheels, levers pivoted to the framework, and brake-shoes pivoted to the levers over the wheels and located for bearing-down contact with the upper portion of the tread of the wheels, the upper ends of the levers being connected together and operated from the source of power, substantially as shown, and

zo for the purpose stated.

2. A brake mechanism for railway-cars, consistingof the two sets 5 5 and 5 5 of side pieces secured to the cross-bean1 on the upper side of the truck, the levers 10, pvoted to the securing-bolts 11, the brake-shoes 17, pivoted in a recess in the levers 10, so as to have frictional contact with the upper part of the wheel, the connecting-rod 12, with turnbuekle 13, and the yoke 14, pivoted to the brake mechanism and connected to the source of power, all combined and operating substantially as shown and described.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing Witnesses.

PETER MCMULLEN.

1Vitnesses:

W. T. MILLER, F. P. KERSTEN. 

